Second Term - A Novel of America in the Last Days (The End of America Series Book 1)

Second Term - A Novel of America in the Last Days (The End of America Series Book 1) by John Price Page B

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Authors: John Price
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guns, especially now after Larry McAlister’s passing, I
think it would be quickly upheld in a test case by the Supreme Court. I’m
saying that the Court would reverse itself, as it’s done in the past. It looks
like it could be 5 to 4 against the gunners , Charlie, and that’s a very
good thing. It’s time to change the law. Let’s give peace a chance.”
    “Well, folks, noted Presidential
Historian Goodwink has sounded the alarm. Is anyone in the White House, or in
the Congress, listening?”
    As it turned out,
people at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue were well ahead of the renowned
Presidential historian.

 
    TWELVE
    Washington,
DC – GWU Hospital
    No one in the
national media could recall any news conference even remotely like this one.
When the White House Press Office sent the initial e-mail notice, some in the
media were openly skeptical of its source, but it was certainly authentic. It
read:
    WHITE
HOUSE PRESS OFFICE MEDIA EVENT ADVISORY
    At 1730 hours,
tomorrow, the President will meet with pool reporters (confirm last week’s
listing for your outlet’s inclusion) at George Washington University Hospital,
900 23 rd Street NW. Check in with the SS Agent in Charge at the Main
Entry to be escorted to the President’s Suite. The President will be joined by
Congressional Leaders (list not confirmed at this juncture) along with Mrs.
Blevins. It is expected that Vice President McAlister’s widow may also be
present.
    No questions will be
taken, nor answered, on any campaign issues, including polls. All statements
made and questions addressed will deal exclusively with new legislation to be
proposed and announced at the M.E. Note --- Network TV will be limited to one
camera per outlet/same for newsprint. Questions? Contact Janice as usual. 202-555-1212
x1257
    The University
Hospital’s Presidential Suite certainly lived up to its name in terms of its
decor, but its over-all size limited the number of people who could squeeze
into its confines, thus curtailing the media personalities who could attend.
This had the effect of bruising some egos, understandably so, given recent
events and the historic news-making nature of this prime time media event in a
hospital with a wounded President. The closest the media had gotten to
President Reagan was his wave from his hospital window. By the time of the
media event, the executives of the major media had reached an agreement to rely
on pool coverage, with most placing their national anchors either at desks to
be set up in the lobby of the Hospital or outside, if the weather cooperated.
It was anticipated that possibly as many Americans could watch this media event
as had watched the moon landing or the launching of the Kuwaiti war.
    The pool picture of
the President, on an I.V. and a pulse monitor, setting upright in his hospital
bed, surrounded by his family and Congressional leaders, made page one of
newspapers not only in the U.S., but in most of the world. There had never been
a Presidential photograph quite like it, a fact confirmed by Historian Goodwink
later that night in network color coverage of the historical event.
    What took pool
reporters by surprise was what the President didn’t say, which was to say, he
said nothing. The First Lady graciously thanked the media for coming, thanked
the Secret Service for protecting her husband and thanked the medical staff at
Parkland and now at GWU for their excellent medical care. She then explained
that the President would not be making public comments at this media event,
because, she said, the President’s doctors had advised, because he was on pain
killing medication for his shrapnel wounds, he should not yet make public
comments.
    Political strategists
for the President’s opponents also thought that the President was right not to
speak, or at least was smart not to do so. The media event turned out to be
adversarial in nature, but the ominous words spoken were by others, not from
the President. The President’s

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